Neon Genesis Evangelion: Avatar
by OOPART-Xephon
Summary: A phase shift in the EVA universe; 30 years of change lead to the rise of EVA once again.
1. Contraception

Disclaimer: EVA and all its characters and references are owned by Gainax. I
    don't own them and I would probably die of surprise if I made money off
    their ideas. Ideas, situations, and characters may unintentionally resemble
    others. Rock on.
    EVANGELION: Avatar
    By: OOPART Xephon
    --
    1: contraception
    Scene 1
    Once again it was a bright and sunny day in the city of Neo Tokyo-3.
    High cirrus clouds floated overhead, nothing more than a faint background to
    the bright blue sky. The unusual quality of a manmade paradise was overridden
    by such a beautiful day. The temperature was even comfortable; those concrete
    and asphalt images were warm to the touch. Faint breezes passed over the
    mountains occasionally, more a justification for living than passing weather
    systems. Birds happily chirped in the trees that ran along the roads,
    although those trees had been planted by man, too. Tokyo-3 was less a city
    and more of something else, something indefinable. It wasn't necessarily a
    place for business or a place for people to live their lives. It was not
    heavily populated; there were no industrial complexes polluting the air; the
    highways leading into and out of the city were sparsely travelled. The city
    streets were a little crowded, more a result of traffic lights than of
    traffic. People walked along sidewalks, but many walked for the sheer
    enjoyment and not to transport themselves from one point to another.
    Tokyo-3 was not a place that seemed real. The city was so peaceful on
    this day, so quiet, so impassive. The rest of the world seemed to run by on
    its daily pace, leaving that city to go on its own path. It was almost as if
    the city was hiding something. Something said that the city was only skin
    deep, and underneath one could find anything at all. Perhaps some dark secret,
    or perhaps a mountain of gold. A wonderful dream. The people carried on their
    lives in this city as if nothing had happened.
    However, they all knew that it had occurred.
    The images that had been shown all over the television and newspapers
    had quickly turned the world's eye on this city of man. Everyone in the city
    knew that something unusual had happened, even the small children who could
    not begin to understand what had transpired in their backyards. The horror of
    the attack was not limited to Tokyo-3; a path of clean-ups led from the
    Pacific to the city. The government, both local and national, had been quick
    to cover up anything that may have been critical. A "monster" of unknown
    origins had attacked Japan, carving destruction until it was stopped by the
    Self-Defense Forces in Tokyo-3. The damage in the city itself was limited to
    an area of about 10 square blocks in the northeast corner of the city, an
    area that was now blocked off my the SDF and military police. People wondered
    why the monster had attacked, why it had come to that city, where had it come
    from; wondered why it had attacked now?
    Eye witness accounts recalled a second monster, described by some as
    a robot. However the officials denied a second one.
    Sitting in a cool classroom, staring outside at the perfect day, was
    a boy who had seen the second monster. He was known by his classmates as a
    transfer student, quiet, and a little strange. There were a few rumors flying
    around the boy, but nothing that was so outrageous as the simple truth. The
    boy did not pay attention as the ancient teacher rambled on about the Second
    Impact, did not even pay attention to the beauty of nature. His mind was
    elsewhere, remembering fragments of what had happened just a few days before.
    His dark blue eyes were almost out of focus, as though his mind was somewhere
    entirely different. He was confused, unconsciously asking questions. Always
    questions, but there weren't any answers for this boy. The monster's
    appearance and subsequential defeat affected the whole city. But this boy had
    been involved in a much deeper way than most of that city.
    Ikari Shinji, unwilling "pilot" of the second monster, pondered these
    questions that plagued his mind. He looked for answers to questions that had
    no answers. He barely understood his situation, and he did not want to
    acknowledge what was going on around him. Perhaps it had been a dream. But...
    That purple mask told him it was the truth.
    That purple mask he saw in his mind silently spoke to him.
    That purple mask... Evangelion... The beast which he had been thrust
    inside to control. The beast which had cost him so much. His former life was
    now over. Evangelion, his father, Katsuragi Misato, that odd girl...
    They were his life now.
    -
    Scene 2
    Ikari pushed his glasses up further on the bridge of his nose. He
    wore them even though his vision was close to perfect,and anyone who had met
    Ikari knew that it was definitely not a fashion statement. The man simply
    wore the spectacles. Sitting behind that great cold desk, totally
    uncluttered, the figure demanded respect from any who approached him. His
    face was blank, though many thoughts passed through his head. Somehow, that
    blankness was filled with emotion. Pure undefinable emotion. A slight
    electronic click was followed by a female voice.
    "Commander Ikari, the general is here for the scheduled meeting." The
    man tapped a small button built into his desk.
    "I understand. Tell him I will meet him in room 313B." Ikari's voice
    was cold and heartless, full of hatred.
    "Yes, sir." Ikari sighed almost inaudibly as he stood. As always
    those memories inhabited his mind. Often he took a step back and tried to
    rationalize his actions, only to fail. Long ago had he realized that it was
    impossible for a human being to find a pure answer to describe the reasons
    for actions. Thirty years had passed since that fateful day, the day his life
    was forever marred.
    -
    Scene 3
    "Huh?" His voice echoed. The boy blinked quickly, then rubbed his
    eyes. Satisfied that his eyes were fine, he looked around. Cars, cars,
    cars... Dim lights... an elevator in the corner... sloping pavement... He was
    in a parking garage. He suddenly realized that he was holding something in
    his right hand. There was a set of keys and a small plastic device with a
    couple buttons on it. He recognized the symbol on one of the buttons and
    pressed it. A car directly to his left chirped twice. The boy looked around
    again. "Hello?" he called.
    For some reason he felt joy when no one responded, and his left arm
    began to tingle. Almost naturally he grabbed one of the three keys on the
    keychain in his hand, and he got into the car. The vehicle started
    immediately, a deep rumble that was the sound of power. The boy realized that
    the car was a manual even though he had already released the emergency brake
    and put the car into reverse. He noticed a piece of paper sitting on the
    passenger seat as he rolled through the garage. Picking it up, he saw that it
    was a map. The boy slowly looked over the face of the map. It appeared to
    have directions written on it, and he assumed that it led from the parking
    garage to somewhere else.
    Somewhere he was supposed to go.
    First, however, he decided he was hungry. After a bit of driving, he
    found a small internet cafe. He walked in, sat at an empty computer station,
    and ordered a cup of coffee and a poppy seed muffin. He browsed over world
    news, reading about troubles in other lands. The coffee was a little grainy,
    but he drank the whole cup anyway. He had no money in his pockets, so he
    reached for his wallet. Very slowly, he pulled open the folds, almost as
    though he were dreading the contents.
    Inside his wallet were 900 yen, something that looked like a credit
    card, and a driver's license. A license for a boy named Kawano Ichiro. Age:
    16. Date of Birth: 01 October 2030. For some reason the address was severely
    smudged and unreadable.
    "That figures," he said quietly. For some reason he felt like he
    couldn't remember anything that had happened in a long time, kind of like
    when a TV show is on but you don't watch the program, then try to remember
    later. Every detail seemed to be there, but was too hazy to decode. However,
    the boy did instantly recognize the face as his own. The black hair hung low
    in his eyes and over his ears, although the dull green eyes stood out from
    the shadow. The long face, strong chin, and protruding cheek bones were
    distinctly masculine. He left the cafe after paying the paltry sum, he
    decided to check out the map. It described a moderate city, though the name
    was nowhere on the paper. Ichiro leaned his head back and stared at the sky
    through the open sunroof.
    The next few moments were much a blur to the boy. Almost immediately
    after he closed his eyes, a deep click was followed by a breeze of fresh air.
    The car's passenger side door had opened! Ichiro sat up straight in his seat
    and looked to his left. He was bewildered to find a middle-aged woman with
    long, light brown hair, who's arms seemed to be covered in tattoos. "Are you
    in the mafia?" the boy asked in a panicked tone.
    "Shut up!" the woman yelled. She pulled a small handgun out of her
    jacket and put it to Ichiro's left temple. She pushed his head so his face
    was forward. He could barely see her outline in his peripheral vision. Of
    course the boy was scared senseless and shut his trap. "Drive!"
    "W-where?" he asked quietly. She grabbed the map from his hand and
    pushed it into his line of sight.
    "Here! Drive here!" She was pointing to the spot that had been
    defined as his goal. Then the map disappeared.
    "But... I don't know how to get there."
    "I'll direct you. Just go. Now!"
    "But I-"
    "Go right!" Ichiro pulled to the road, looked right, then began to
    look left. The barrel of the gun pushed his head back. "It's clear. Go now!"
    A thousand thoughts and emotions were running through Ichiro's head, although
    not many were perceptible in his state of shock.
    The rest of the trip went similarly. The woman slowly became calmer,
    as did Ichiro. The trip took the pair to the outskirts of the unnamed city,
    to a small one-story concrete building with tiny rectangular windows. The
    building had a nearly flat roof with black shingles. The entirety of the
    structure was painted a very plain light gray. The paint was clean, and
    looked as if it was relatively new. There was one door, and six parking
    spaces in front of the building. Not one was occupied before they arrived.
    "Park the car and don't move." Ichiro slowly moved the car to a spot near the
    door. He noticed that all the windows were mirrored, and nothing inside could
    not be seen. The door was unremarkable. "OK, I am going to take the gun off
    your head, but I'm not putting it away. When I tell you to, get out of the
    car and put your back towards the building. You hear me?" Her voice was very
    even and controlled.
    "Yea." As Ichiro turned off the car and climbed out, he heard the
    woman mumbling. A few moments later, he heard the other door slam closed.
    "Go ahead." Ichiro got out and turned 180 degrees to his right.
    Based on the sound produced when the woman moved, it sounded like she was
    wearing hard-heeled shoes. Not long after the sounds of walking stopped,
    there was a small click and a slight 'pfft!'. More shoe-sounds, then...
    Ichiro yelped and nearly fell down backwards when the woman suddenly
    grabbed his collar. "Come on, come on."
    "Hey! What're you-"
    "Just be quiet, kid." The woman pulled him backwards up to the
    building, then let him go. "Keep facing that direction, away from the
    building." Ichiro heard some jingling that sounded like keys. Sure enough,
    there was a slight creaking noise, and then the woman grabbed his shoulders.
    "OK, now. You are going to turn around and go inside. There should be three
    doors inside, with a panel to the right of each door. Go to the far left door.
    The panel will have a keypad and a few other colored buttons." She moved one
    of her hands from his shoulder, then he felt a paper being pressed against
    his chest. He grabbed it. "There are instructions on the map in the right top
    corner."
    "Umm... Why don't you just do it?"
    "Don't ask! Just do!" Suddenly she swung him around to face the
    building again, staying behind him the whole time. "Just go to the door on
    the left and enter what's written on the map, OK? You got me?"
    "Yea, OK... I'm going." Ichiro slowly stepped inside the doorway. The
    inside of the structure was covered in dull grey metal tiles. Just as the
    woman had said, there were three doors with panels to the right. He went
    directly to the left door and examined the map again. He hadn't noticed the
    handwritten note on the map before, but then again he hadn't really looked at
    anything except the route he had taken. "Let's see... Eight, six, eight,
    nine, one, one, zero, zero, zero, seven, three, six, G Blue, G Red, H Blue,
    G Red." He pressed the buttons as he read them.
    He waited patiently for something to happen. After a long, tense
    moment, a quiet beep emitted from the keypad. The door quickly disappeared
    into the floor, and a rush of cold, pressurized air rushed past the boy. Just
    as soon as the door opened, a much colder touch graced the back of his neck.
    "Don't move! I'm going to blindfold you."
    "But, why-"
    "I said don't ask."
    "OK, fine." The boy put up no resistance as the woman tied a piece of
    black cloth around his head, totally obscuring his eyesight. She grabbed his
    right arm and began to pull.
    Kawano tried to remember which way he was being tugged, but
    eventually he gave up. He was totally lost, his sense of direction totally
    skewed. Ichiro lost all track of time and space in that unknown place, being
    led around by a woman who he knew only as abductor. Oddly, he felt at ease,
    not nervous at all.
    It seemed to the boy like he was being led down, maybe underground.
    And sometimes when he heard doors slide open, there were whooshes of cold
    air. Kawano had no idea what was going on at all, but he didn't really make
    any effort to try and figure out his situation. He began to hear electronic
    voices making nonsense announcements. They sounded kind of military in
    nature, but not really...
    Suddenly he felt himself pulled to a stop, then a doorway closed
    behind him. This room was relatively noisy, with many voices. "Ah, Kawano-san,
    you are finally here."
    "Who are... you?" the boy asked slowly.
    "Just a man, Kawano-san. Just a man."
    "Why am I blindfolded?" Just as soon as he had spoken those words,
    the blindfold was removed.
    "Kawano Ichiro, welcome to NERV."
    "N-NERV? What's-" A man in a black suit stepped forth from the
    darkness, clobbering the blinded boy. Ichiro collapsed to the ground. A
    somewhat annoyed expression came over the boy's abductor.
    "Was that absolutely necessary, Commander?"
    "It was agreed by general consensus that this was the best plan of
    action. Were you not part of the voting group?" His words were cold and
    heartless, as usual.
    "I was. But that doesn't mean I voted in favor of this," she spat,
    motioning to the unconscious boy at her feet. "Excessive force is not always
    the answer, Commander."
    With the slightest hint of spite in his voice, the Commander of the
    NERV special organization replied, "There was a time when you would have
    disagreed with your previous statement."
    She frowned slightly, but inside she was beginning to feel that same
    old rage rise up. Saluting her superior, she asked to leave. Asuka Soryu
    clenched her fist after the doors had closed. "He's just like his father."


	2. Ways and Means

See legal disclaimer in part 1
    EVANGELION: Avatar
    By: OOPART Xephon
    --
    2: Ways and Means
    Scene 4
    "Ow, my head..." The boy slowly opened his eyes, only to be met by
    complete darkness. "First I get kidnapped, then blindfolded, then somebody
    knocks me out, and now here I am in the dark again. What's happening?"
    Ichiro began to slowly grope the area around him. The whole of his
    surroundings was a cool metal. He recalled the room with three doors. "Is this
    the same place?"
    He slowly made a mental map of his "room." It was square, maybe three
    meters wide and four meters deep. Three walls were the metal, while one was
    bars, like a jail cell. There was a bed against the far wall, but it wasn't
    exactly comfortable. The rest of the room was empty.
    With nothing else to do, Ichiro tried to fall asleep. However, the
    brief images of his abductor kept running through his imagination. He tried
    to remember more details about her, but it was too blurry for him to make a
    decent picture of her. Where had she taken him? A place called NERV. But what
    did that mean? In the few seconds he glimpsed of the NERV place, he saw
    many holographic monitors of carying sizes. It appeared to him that there
    were several levels of people working, and that he had been taken to the
    highest one. Three people were waiting for him and his abductor on that
    highest plane: a very old man, a younger-looking one, and a woman with blue
    hair. The younger man had been the one who spoke to him. He wore glasses, but
    the lenses were tinted a dark orange, so Ichiro hadn't been able to see his
    eyes.
    Oddly enough, Ichiro felt as though those people expected him to be
    at that place. Maybe it was them who had been behind his kidnapping. But that
    brought up the question of... why him?
    -
    Scene 5
    "Lieutenant, you're insubordination today in front of the staff was
    uncalled for. It would be in the best interests of our ideals that you
    present any misgivings you have in private."
    The Lieutenant Soryu Asuka frowned. "If you recall, Commander, I made
    my 'misgivings' apparent at the executive meeting two days before the
    operation was carried out." The Commander's face remained a steely blank.
    "Perhaps if you were to listen instead of just bark out orders, I wouldn't
    have to argue with you in front of your subordinates."
    A corner of the man's mouth rose a little. "I thought you would have
    been happy to retrieve the boy." Soryu's heart suddenly rose, and she clenched
    her fists. "Don't tell me you weren't glad to see him."
    "His first memories of me will be as his abductor, not his guardian.
    How effectively can I watch over him if he thinks me as nothing more than a
    kidnapper?"
    "That is a matter for you and him to work out. Dismissed."
    "Yes, sir."
    "Oh, and Lieutenant?" Soryu halted in her footsteps at the border of
    the exit, but did not turn to face her Commander. "Remember that this
    situation is your fault as well as mine. Please remain professional in front
    of the staff. NERV isn't a place for old emotions."
    "... Understood."
    Soryu stormed down the hallways of NERV, her hands still clenched
    tightly. She cursed herself for letting him get to her, even after those
    years had passed away. As per her orders, she was to retrieve the boy named
    Kawano Ichiro from the brig, then take him to her apartment. She was to act
    as his legal guardian until NERV had no more use for him. That's just the
    way things worked around that place.
    She tried to press such things out of her mind as she descended into
    the bowels of Central Dogma. She tried to figure out the best way to approach
    her new charge. Sliding her ID card through the final doorway, she entered
    the brig of NERV. As always, it was very sparsely lit. A member of the Section
    2 security team stepped forth.
    "Lieutenant Soryu?"
    "Yes. I'm here to pick up the boy."
    "Yes, ma'am." He escorted her to the door, flashlight in hand.
    "Kawano Ichiro!" The man's deep voice echoed in that empty place. The boy,
    who appeared to have been sleeping, quickly popped up.
    "Yes?"
    "You are being released."
    "Um... OK." The man unlocked the door and shined the light on the boy.
    He was still wearing the gray pants and white polo shirt that looked like a
    school uniform. His blue eyes shown brightly from behind his hair. He couldn't
    see who was there, but he knew there was another person besides the guard.
    He slowly got up and walked toward the light, and a soft hand grabbed his
    wrist. He was quickly pulled away from the cell and into a hallway beyond the
    jail.
    Ichiro squinted, as the lighting was more than he had become
    accustomed to during his detainment. When his eyesight returned to normal, he
    looked towards the source of the tugging. It was a woman with long, light
    brown hair...
    "You!" He yanked his wrist back but was surprised when he didn't
    break free. Her grip was very strong.
    "What?" She sounded kind of annoyed, yet also kind of sad.
    "You're the one who kidnapped me, aren't you?"
    "Yes, I was." She didn't turn around to look at him. Ichiro noticed
    that her hair was more of an auburn, almost red, and she was a couple inches
    taller than him. Maybe she was foreign?
    The two walked for a while, back towards the surface. When they
    finally reached the exit point, Ichiro finally reconized that he was back on
    the surface. "Hey, isn't this the same building that you made me go to?"
    "It is. You see?" she said as they walked outside. "There's my car."
    "Your car? Then how come I had the keys?" The woman suddenly turned
    to him, a large grin on her face.
    "Because! Don't you realize it was a part of an over-elaborate plan
    by a secret organization to initiate you to our cause?"
    "Um... No, I didn't realize that."
    "I guess it was an OK plan then, huh?"
    "Yea... So, you didn't really kidnap me?" Ichiro asked as they got
    back into the blue car. True enough, it was the same car as before, exactly.
    "Legally, not really. Here." She handed him a folder with many papers
    inside as she pulled into traffic. "Those are the papers legalizing your
    transfer into my care. I am now your legal guardian. Your uncle signed all
    the necessary papers."
    "My uncle?... Oh... yea..." Soryu glanced at him out of the corner
    of her eye.
    "Something the matter?"
    "No, I just... Things are kind of hard to remember from anything
    before I took your car earlier."
    "Well, you know what they say."
    "No... What do they say?" Asuka smirked.
    "They say that when a man meets a beautiful woman, all his memories
    prior to their meeting are a blur." Her smile grew when the boy said nothing.
    "So, I'll lay it down to you right now, clear cut. I am a lieutenant of the
    special government organization NERV. NERV studies and records data on a
    super tough, secret assault weapon, called Evangelion. Our researchers have
    been looking for a child who could pilot the EVA for a long time, and they
    finally found you."
    "I'm to pilot the secret weapon?"
    "Yes."
    "Why me? Why am I special?"
    "You should be proud of this accomplishment, Kawano-san. The weapon
    can only be piloted by very special people." Although she was trying to
    sound happy, the bitterness in her voice was evident. Ichiro decided not to
    pursue his questioning any further. "I guess I can introduce myself. My name
    is Soryu Asuka. I don't mind if you call me Asuka."
    "OK. Same here."
    "You want to be called 'Asuka' as well?" The boy laughed a little.
    "No, I meant you can call me Ichiro if you want to."
    "Got it. I know you have a lot of questions, Ichiro-san, but you'll
    find the answers in time, OK?" He nodded. "Good. Let's go home now. I'm
    tired from all this bullshitting. But I'm a pretty good actor, aren't I?"
    "Yea, you are. But... I don't know... The whole time I kind of got
    the feeling like you really wouldn't shoot me."
    "Of course not! I could never hurt my boy."
    The two smiled as the car sped down the road.
    -
    Scene 6
    The Commander sat at his desk, looking out over the orange-lit surface
    of the Geofront. The old man and the woman with blue hair stood next to his
    desk. "So, the retrieval was a complete success?" he asked sternly.
    "Yes, there were no errors," the woman with blue hair said.
    "Good. Doctor Ayanami, please make sure that situation remains in
    good condition."
    "Yes, sir." Doctor Ayanami Rei's voice was flat as ever.
    "And the Committee? Have they approved of these circumstances,
    Kaji-san?" The older man nodded, but said nothing. His eyes reflected little
    light, and his graying facial hair remained unshaven as always. "Excellent."
    "We will then proceed with the first plan of action, sir?" Kaji asked
    slowly. "Everything thus far has gone according to our plans."
    "That's not entirely correct."
    "Oh?"
    "Lorenz has shown signs of reemerging from the depths of Hell."
    "Hm, I didn't think that was possible. But then again, around those
    people I suppose I wouldn't be surprised."
    "Yes, I agree. Therefore I believe we should move along with
    contingency plan 126. Ayanami?"
    "That is acceptable."
    "Good. We will move ahead with plan 126 as of today, 18 May 2046."
    -
    Scene 7
    Soryu parked her car in a parking garage next to her apartment
    complex. After walking over into the complex, the pair continued in silence up
    to an elevator. "I've already had all of your belongings moved into my place."
    "OK."
    On the fifth of five floors, the ninth apartment to the right was
    Soryu's apartment and Ichiro's new home. A metal plate on the door had two
    names etched into it. The first, Soryu Asuka, was written in romanji and
    seemed to have been there for a long time. Beneath that was the name Kawano
    Ichiro, in traditional script. The edges were much more crisp than the other
    name's.
    "Have you lived here for a long time?"
    "No. I've owned this place for a few years, but I just moved in here
    about a month ago, so I'm kinda new here, too." She pulled a card out of her
    pocket and slid it through the acceptor next to the door. It slid over into
    the wall to the left. "I'm home." Both took off their shoes and stepped
    inside. "You should also call this home now."
    "I'm... home." Soryu smiled.
    "Good! You hungry?"
    "Yea."
    "Alright, I'll heat up something. Make yourself at home." The first
    thing Kawano noticed was the small size of the apartment. Inside the door
    there was a small patch of tile with a many pairs of womens' shoes next to it.
    This was incorporated into the living room, which comprised of a TV setup to
    the left in a corner. A couch and table set across the room from the door. A
    sliding door that led to a patio comprised most of the wall between the
    TV and the couch. To the right of the door was the kitchen, which was little
    more than a few appliances and cabinets. A small bar with two stools was
    opposite the kitchen, and the small floorspace for dining was empty
    otherwise.
    Across from the door was a very short hallway with three doors.
    Ichiro assumed they were a bathroom and two bedrooms. All of the carpet was
    a very deep blue, and looked old. Not that the place looked dirty. In fact it
    was very clean, besides the few boxes of unpacked things that still remained.
    The boy sat down on the couch. A bit later, Asuka sat down beside him and
    handed him a box of instant ramen.
    Both of them quickly gobbled down the whole of their portions. Soryu
    looked strangely at the boy for a little when they were done. "Let me guess,
    you don't know how to make anything besides instant foods either, right?" she
    asked with a goofy smile on her face.
    "No, not really."
    "Hm, well I guess that's a good thing since you won't expect anything
    more from me than you're used to. Ya know, they only told me that I would have
    a charge when they dropped off your things."
    "Really? Shouldn't your superior have told you in advance?" Asuka's
    smile quickly disappeared, and she flipped on the television without a word.
    "You said that you owned this place for a long time but you just moved in.
    Did you own another place as well?"
    "Kind of. I bought this apartment when I had the money, years ago.
    But I fell on tough times, so I had to move in with a friend for a while. The
    economy had been doing very well, and recovery from Second Impact was
    complete, but the bottom fell out after the Moon's Touch Incident. You must
    have been about five at the time."
    "Yea..."
    "Hm? Still having memory problems?"
    "Kind of... It's not a problem, really. It's just annoying."
    "Maybe it will clear up, like temporary amnesia or something. I've
    heard of such things before." They watched TV for almost forty-five minutes
    before Asuka spoke again. "So, you're pretty shy, huh?"
    "What? No, not really. I'm just..."
    "Quiet?"
    "I guess."
    "Well, that's OK, but don't be afraid to talk to me, Kawano-san. I'm
    here for you if you ever need to talk to someone, OK? Don't make me feel
    useless."
    "OK."
    "You should always do what a beautiful woman asks."
    "OK." Asuka laughed, and that caused Ichiro to smile. Her laughter
    was so refreshingly pure. It seemed like perhaps she hadn't laughed in a
    long time, not real laughter. "What's so funny?"
    "You are. You kinda remind me of a girl I knew when I was about
    your age. Except I like you a lot more than I ever liked that girl."
    "Why didn't you like her?" The woman's smile persisted, however the
    look in her eyes had changed to one of hate.
    "She was little more than a doll, controlled by someone else."
    "I never met anyone like that."
    "Be glad. She was so annoyingly perfect in every way. Even after I
    found out why she was that way, I still couldn't changed the feelings I had
    for her. It got to a point where I couldn't stand those people anymore, and I
    had to leave..."
    "You sound sad."
    "Yea, well... That's all in the past, so I should be glad that I have
    someone to live with now and experience daily living with, right?" Ichiro
    nodded with a little more enthusiasm.
    "Right."
    "OK! Now, on to the dirty business of chores! Usually I'm a pretty
    messy girl. The only reason this place is so clean is because I've been
    really busy lately!"
    "At NERV?"
    "Yea... Ya know what, how 'bout you just take care of anything that
    you see that needs to be taken care of, and I'll do the same. Having a set
    schedule of duties isn't the kind of life I like. Just clean up after yourself
    and things should stay decent."
    "OK, Asuka-san."
    "No, no, no, that won't do. Just call me Asuka, OK?" She laughed
    again at the puzzled look on the boy's face. "It's alright to call me that.
    I lived in Germany until I was fourteen, so I'm kind of a foreigner. I guess
    I'm still not used to all that extra crap on the end of my name."
    "Oh. That explains your accent, I guess."
    "Eh?!" Soryu was surprised; no one had made mention of her Kobe
    accent in a long, long time. She liked to think she has masked it after all
    these years, but... "Yea, yea.."
    "I'm sorry." Noticing that the boy was staring into his lap, she
    placed a hand on his shoulder. He looked over at his new guardian. "Hm?"
    "Some things never change, Ichiro-kun."
    -
    Scene 8
    Back in that cold, dark office, sat Commander Ikari Shinji. His
    Vice stood beside his desk, looking out over the Geofront as usual. Kaji
    looked pensive; Ikari, blank.
    "You finished reviewing the data recordings of Soryu's apartment?"
    Kaji asked lightly. There was no response. "I see. I would advise you to
    take responsibilities for your actions, even those that you have forced from
    your memories. This is the beginning of a critical phase of our plans. You
    should be concentrating on it clearly."
    "I am aware of all these facts."
    "Don't be upset that she has opened her heart. I'm telling you this as
    a friend, Shinji, not as your elder or second-in-command. Please listen to
    my advice."
    "Kaji, although I respect your opinion, I am no longer a child. I
    know how the world works now, and I can control my own emotions. Don't
    overstep your boundaries."
    The older man's brow furrowed slightly. "You're a stone-hearted fool,
    Ikari. Just like your father was. You should learn from his mistakes,
    otherwise you will repeat them."
    Ikari remained blank behind those orange glasses.


End file.
